System and method for synchronizing the configuration of distributed network management applications

ABSTRACT

A change management system to synchronize the configuration of network management applications. Traditional network management systems are maintained by hand-entering device lists into individual network management applications with no common-ties between the different applications. Whenever a network management application is changed or upgraded, it frequently becomes necessary to insure that the upgrade is populated throughout the network in order for devices to talk to one another in an error free way. The present invention is a system and method that automates the change management process in a real-time using a two-way communications model that permits a central database to affect changes on all or some network management applications/systems in the field, while also allowing those same field systems to affect the central database thereby reducing the time required for updating and monitoring a system when device changes take place.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 10/456,197filed Jun. 6, 2003 now U.S. Pat. No. 7,523,184, which is a continuationin part of application Ser. No. 10/335,272 filed Dec. 31, 2002 nowabandoned. The 10/456,197 and the 10/335,272 applications areincorporated by reference herein, in their entireties, for all purposes.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to network management. More specifically,the present invention is an automated change management system andmethod to manage diverse management functions across a network in anautomated fashion.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

It is difficult to imagine a communication process that does not involvea collection of devices connected by a network. Networks carry voice anddata communications for communication, entertainment, business, anddefense endeavors to name but a few. For a variety of reasons, mostnetworks are collections of smaller sub-networks that are managed firstat the sub-network level and then at the integrated network level.Management comprises configuring devices for connection to the network,monitoring and reporting on network and device loads, and managingdevice failure.

A device is often managed by a variety of applications depending on thefunction to be managed. For example, the workload of a device may bemanaged by application A supplied by vendor A and the configuration of adevice may be managed by application B supplied by vendor B. In thisexample, application A is configured via a script to manage device A andreports its results to a workload database. Application B is configuredusing a text file to manage the configuration of device B and reportsits results to a configuration database. Typically, applications A and Bcannot directly communicate with each other or share data.

In modern day networks such as wireless networks, intranets or theInternet, there are a number of network devices of various types. Suchnetwork devices may be workstations, routers, servers, and a widevariety of other smart devices that appear on networks. Networkmanagement tools have evolved to manage these devices. As networks haveincreased in size and complexity, network management functions havebecome increasingly resource intensive.

Network management comprises a number of functions, including (butwithout limitation) fault management, configuration management,performance management, security management, inventory management andcost management. Of these functions, configuration management is ofparticular importance as it affects in varying degree the effectivenessof the other network management systems in managing all of the otherfunctions.

Most devices and applications on a network (sometimes collectivelyreferred to as “objects” or “network management objects”) are designedto be configured, thus broadening the applications for which aparticular object can be used. The information comprising an object'sconfiguration is both object and context dependent. That is, theconfiguration of a device may depend on the device, where in a networkit is installed, what it is connected to, what applications it isintended to run, and the like. In order for a network to operateefficiently, the configuration of the various objects comprising thenetwork must be known at all times. An unplanned change in theconfiguration of a router, for example, may cause the networkperformance to deteriorate or to fail altogether, may result inincreased error reporting and error correction processing time, andcause the network operator to expend resources to locate and correct theconfiguration error.

Network management tools have been developed to detect changes in theconfigurations of critical network components. These tools monitor theconfiguration files of such objects, issue alarms when a change isdetected, and offer manual or automatic restoration of the changedconfiguration file to a file known to be good. However, currentconfiguration monitoring tools are reactionary. Such tools can determinethat a configuration has changed, but cannot initiate a reconfigurationof specific devices or applications on the network or sub-network, orrelate the configuration of one device on a network to another device onthat network without human intervention. Rather, many traditionalnetwork management systems are maintained by hand-entering device listsinto individual network management applications with no common-tiesbetween the different applications.

Whenever a network device is changed or upgraded, it frequently becomesnecessary to insure that the upgrade is populated throughout the networkin order for devices to talk to one another in an error free way. Thedifficulty with updating distributed network devices is that thistypically occurs on a device-by-device basis. Therefore the possibilityof human error is ever present. Misentering or omitting deviceinformation into different network management applications results in anetwork that is not effectively managed. Further, if different networkmanagement applications are present on various network devices, overtime, the network applications become increasingly asynchronousresulting in critical failures and the potential for loss of visibilityon the network of various devices.

At any point in time, it is desirable for a network managementapplication to know the configuration of each configurable device thatsuch network management application is managing. This is accomplished bythe network management application polling the managed devices andkeeping a record of the polled data. However, networks with a largenumber of network management applications have difficulty synchronizingagainst a single inventory of devices and synchronizing device statusover all of the network management applications. And, as previouslynoted, the network management applications are typically from diversevendors and may not be able to communicate with each other. The resultis that over the network, the data used to manage the configuration ofnetwork devices and network device polling applications is not current,and becomes less current (more asynchronous) as time goes on.

Various approaches to improving network management systems have beendisclosed. U.S. Pat. No. 5,785,083 ('083 patent) to Singh, et al.entitled “Method And System For Sharing Information Between NetworkManagers,” discloses a technique for managing a network by sharinginformation between distributed network managers that manage a differentportion of a large network. Databases in the different network managerscan be synchronized with each other. The information that is shared isto be used by an end-user who monitors the network and takes correctiveaction when necessary.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,295,558 ('558 patent) to Davis, et. al., entitled“Automatic Status Polling Failover For Devices In A Distributed NetworkManagement Hierarchy,” discloses an automatic failover methodologywhereby a central control unit, such as a management station, willautomatically takeover interface status polling of objects of acollection station that is temporarily unreachable. The '558 patentteaches a failover methodology that reassigns polling responsibilityfrom a failed collection station to a central control unit (such as amanagement station). A polling application at the central control unitobtains the topology of the failed collection station and performspolling until the polling station returns to operational status.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,345,239 (the '239 patent) to Bowman-Amuah, entitled“Remote Demonstration Of Business Capabilities In An E-CommerceEnvironment,” discloses and claims a system, method and article ofmanufacture for demonstrating business capabilities in an e-commerceenvironment. The '239 patent discloses, but does not claim, networkmanagement functionality that refers to synchronization of configurationdata over a communication system as an objective. The disclosures, madein the context of a discussion of a network configuration and re-routingsub-process, describe functions but not means.

U.S. Patent Application 20020057018 (the '018 application) to Branscomb,et. al., entitled “Network device power distribution scheme,” disclosesand claims a telecommunications network device including at least onepower distribution unit capable of connecting to multiple, unregulatedDC power feeds. The '018 application further discloses (but does notclaim) an approach to a network management system that features a singledata repository for configuration information of each network device.Network servers communicate with network devices and with clientdevices. Client devices communicate with a network administrator. Theadministrator can use a client to configure multiple network devices.Client devices also pass configuration requirements to the networkservers and receive reports from network relating configuration data ofnetwork devices. According to this approach, pushing data from a serverto multiple clients synchronizes the clients with minimal polling thusreducing network traffic. Configuration changes made by theadministrator directly are made to the configuration database within anetwork device (through the network server) and, through active queries,automatically replicated to a central NMS database. In this way, devicesand the NMS are always in synch.

The approaches described in these references are those that relate tomanagement of the network manually. What would be particularly useful isa system and method that automates the change management process inreal-time using a two-way communications model that permits a centraldatabase to affect changes on all or some network managementapplications/systems in the field, while also allowing those same fieldsystems to affect the central database. It also would be desirable forsuch a system and method to update all network management applicationson the network upon the occurrence of a change in a network device andto manage failover through logically assigned buddies. Finally, such asystem and method would also decrease the errors associated with humanintervention to update network management applications.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An embodiment of the present invention is a system and method formanaging and synchronizing network management applications from a commonsource. A change management process is automated by employing a realtime two way communications model that permits a central databasecomprising the latest network management software and configuration toeffect changes on all or some network management applications andsystems in the field.

It is therefore an aspect of the present invention to eliminate humanerrors associated with updating network management applications.

It is a further aspect of the present invention to insure that networkapplications are synchronized when a network device is added or removed,or when the configuration of a network device is changed.

It is yet another aspect of the present invention to significantlyreduce the time required to update network monitoring systems whendevice changes occur in the network.

It is still another aspect of the present invention to create andinstall a configuration file on the network management systemapplications for any new network device added to the network.

It is still another aspect of the present invention to provideapplication fail over capabilities for those devices using the sameapplication and between different applications on a network according tocertain rules and based on logically assigned backup servers(“buddies”).

It is yet another aspect of the present invention to automaticallydetect changes in devices on the network and immediately update allnetwork management system applications associated with changed devices.

It is still another aspect of the present invention to update a centraldatabase concerning all network management applications and devices onthe network.

It is still another aspect of the present invention to maintain completesynchronization of all devices that are being monitored on a network.

These and other aspects of the present invention will become apparentfrom a review of the description that follows.

In an embodiment of the present invention, a change management enginesynchronizes the configuration of distributed network managementapplications, as well as synchronizes device status from those samedistributed network management applications with a central database.“Change management” as used in this context means the process by whichnetwork management poller and aggregation applications are synchronizedto the exact configurations of the devices they monitor in real-timewithout human intervention. The network can be a wired or wirelessnetwork. Further, embodiments of the present invention operate on anintranet, the Internet, or any other wired or wireless network that isto be managed as an entity. These embodiments operate in anapplication-diverse environment allowing the synchronization of networksthat use applications of different vendors to perform various networkmanagement functions.

In an embodiment of the present invention, the change management processis automated by employing a real time two way communications model thatpermits a central database comprising the latest network managementsoftware and configuration to effect changes on all or some networkmanagement applications and systems in the field. In this embodiment,field systems also affect the central database by transmitting polledinformation into that database. Each network device is entered into acentral database one time. After the initial data entry, this embodimentof the present invention handles all of the processes associated withconfiguring different and distributed network management systems andapplications in the field. Thus, this embodiment of the presentinvention acts as a manager of other system managers in order to insurethat all network management applications are synchronized across thenetwork and binds many disparate functions of change management underone control model. Further, automating the configuration process reducesthe risk that human error will disrupt the monitoring of criticalsystems.

In yet another embodiment of the present invention, the process ofhanding over tasks of a failed monitoring device (fail over) is managedin real-time fail over capability. This embodiment allows a singlegraphical user interface to be the means of monitoring a plurality ofdevices over the network. The plurality of devices is polled by anynumber of different servers and applications with responses from thepolling reported via Simple Network Management Protocol (SNMP) to acentral database. Thus a unified view of the status of each of thedevices on the network is created and monitored.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates elements of a typical network management system.

FIG. 2A illustrates elements of a network manage system with a changemanagement system added according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2B illustrates elements of a network manage system comprising anapplication server running a device information gathering application ina change management system according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

FIG. 2C illustrates elements of a network manage system comprising adiscrete device information gathering application in a change managementsystem according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 illustrates a data management workflow of a change managementsystem according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 illustrates the components of a core engine according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 illustrates the components of an autocontroller according to anembodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 illustrates the core engine/autocontroller transfer file formatsas used in an embodiment according to the present invention.

FIG. 7 illustrates the structure of a meta file as used in an embodimentaccording to the present invention.

FIG. 8 the structure of an OID configuration file as used in anembodiment according to the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The description of the present invention that follows utilizes a numberof acronyms the definitions of which are provided below for the sake ofclarity and comprehension.

-   -   APISC—Application Programming Interface Super Controller    -   ASCII—American Standard Code for Information Interchange    -   DIDB—Device Inventory Database    -   DPM—Data Poller Module    -   DSM—Distributed Status Monitor    -   FTP—File Transfer Protocol    -   GUI—Graphical User Interface    -   ID—Identification    -   IP—Internet Protocol    -   NDB—Network Database    -   NMS—Network Management System    -   NOC—Network Operations Center    -   Object or Network Management Object—a network application or        network device that is configurable.    -   ODBC—Open Database Connectivity    -   OID—Object Identifier    -   OSPF—Open Shortest Path First Interior Gateway Protocol    -   RDC—Regional Data Center    -   SNMP—Simple Network Management Protocol    -   TMP—Temporary

In addition, certain NMS software products are referred to by theirproduct names, which include the following:

Netcool (MicroMuse, Inc.)

Visionary (MicroMuse, Inc.)

Internet Service Monitor or “ISM” (MicroMuse, Inc.)

Remedy (BMC Software, Inc.)

Referring to FIG. 1, the elements of a network management system (NMS)are illustrated. NMS operations station 120 is linked to a centraldatabase 100. Central database 100 comprises a device inventory database(DIDB) 105 and the network database (NDB) 110. The DIDB 105 storesconfiguration data for applications used to manage the networkmanagement system (NMS). For each sub-network managed by networkmanagement system, configuration data for devices on that sub-networkare acquired by the associated poller server (for example, poller server155), aggregated by the associated data aggregator (for example, dataaggregator 135), and stored in the NDB 110.

Central database 100 is linked to data aggregators 135, 145. Dataaggregators 135 and 145 are linked, respectively, to NMS poller servers155 and 165. NMS poller server 155 monitors sub-network 170 and NMSpoller server 165 monitors sub-network 180. Sub-network 170 comprisesdevices 172, 174, and 176, and sub-network 180 comprises devices 182,184, and 186. By way of illustration, and not as a limitation, a“device” comprises a router, a switch, a modem, a server, or otherconfigurable device and a software application. For ease of discussion,only two sub-networks have been illustrated in FIG. 1, but this is notmeant as a limitation. As will be appreciated by those skilled in theart of the present invention, any number of sub-networks may be underthe management of the network management system without departing fromthe scope of the present invention. As illustrated in FIG. 1, NMS pollerserver 155 and NMS poller server 165 are linked to each other to createredundancy should one of the NMS poller servers fail. Additionally, forpurposes of illustration and not as a limitation only two NMS pollerserver/data aggregator pairs are shown in FIG. 1. As will be apparent tothose skilled in the art of the present invention, a plurality of NMSpoller server/data aggregator pairs may be used to manage eithersub-network.

Each NMS poller server/data aggregator pair manages the sub-network towhich it is assigned by polling the sub-network for relevant data. Theparticular tasks performed by a NMS poller server depend on theapplication software running on that server. Typical tasks includemonitoring network devices for changes in configuration, performance,load, and environmental parameters, analyzing the data received fromnetwork devices, and sending the data to the central database 100 forfurther processing by NMS operations station 120.

In the NMS illustrated in FIG. 1, the management of the NMS pollerservers and data aggregators is through NMS operations station 120. TheNMS operations station 120 is monitored by human operators who evaluateevents reported to the central database and make decisions about problemresolution.

Referring now to FIG. 2A, a portion of a network management system isillustrated with the addition of elements comprising a change managementsystem according to an embodiment of the present invention. The centraldatabase 200 (comprising DIDB 205 and NDB 210) is linked to core engine215. Core engine 215 is linked to auto controller 220. Autocontroller220 is co-located on an application server 225. Application server 225is linked to one or more devices 230, 235, and 240 over network 250.Devices 230, 235, and 240 comprise configurable devices andapplications. Application server 225 manages these devices according tothe task to which application server 225 is assigned.

In an embodiment of the present invention, application server 225comprises a device information gathering application (as illustrated inFIG. 2B). In an alternate embodiment, the device gathering function isperformed by a device information gathering application 270 that is notoperated by application server 225 (as illustrated in FIG. 2C). As willbe apparent to those skilled in the art, application server 225 mayimplement one of a number of network management tools without departingfrom the scope of the present invention. By way of illustration,application server 225 may be a reporting engine, a network portal, oran access control server.

In an embodiment of the present invention and as illustrated in FIG. 2A,autocontroller 220 resides on application server 225. In an alternateembodiment, autocontroller 220 comprises a discrete functional componentthat is linked to application server 225. Autocontroller 220 manages,configures, and monitors all of the applications running on applicationserver 225. Core engine 215 acts as the hub of the network managementsystem configuration control functions. While core engine 215 isillustrated in FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C as a stand-alone component, theinvention is not so limited. As will be appreciated by those skilled inthe art, the functions of core engine 215 may be integrated with othernetwork management functions without departing from the scope of thepresent invention.

Core engine 215 reads device, site, polling, and configuration data fromthe DIDB 205, analyzes configuration data, builds applicationconfiguration files when needed, updates the DIDB 210 with the mostcurrent data, schedules device polling, and manages and monitors autocontroller 220. Together, the core engine 215 and autocontroller 220provide an existing network management system with the capability toautomate the change management process in real-time.

In another embodiment, the autocontroller resides on each server thatcontains network management applications requiring core engine control.The autocontroller installs updated configuration files, launches andrestarts applications, executes shell commands, parses and analyzesoutput files, returns any requested results back to be the core engine,and backs up another autocontroller (a “buddy”). With respect to thislatter function, an autocontroller is capable of performing thefunctions of its buddy autocontroller should the buddy autocontrollerexperience a failure. Additionally, each autocontroller comprisesredundancy features to determine when the assigned buddy autocontrollerfails or becomes unreachable. While FIGS. 2A, 2B, and 2C illustrate asingle autocontroller managing a single application server, the presentinvention is not so limited. Any number of autocontrollers may each bepaired with an application server under the control of a core engine toimplement a change management system on any size network.

The network management systems illustrated in FIG. 1 and FIGS. 2A, 2B,and 2C are, of course, simplified views of the architecture of afunctioning NMS. What these views illustrate is that the addition of theelements of the change management system of the present inventionsignificantly increases the ability of NMS to manage itself without theneed for human intervention. Thus, the core engine and the autocontroller of the present invention reside within a network managementsystem and mange the systems that manage the network.

Referring to FIG. 2A and FIG. 3 (SEE REVISED FIG. 3-PAGE AFTER NEXT), adata management workflow of a change management system according to anembodiment of the present invention is illustrated. The workflow isdescribed in reference to a network management system illustrated inFIG. 2A. In this embodiment, the core engine 215 sends a query to thedevice inventory database (DIDB) 300 to obtain information relating todevices (235, 240, 245) controlled by application server 225. The DIDBreturns the current device data 305 and the core engine 215 checks theresults for devices that are new or modified since the last time thequery was run 310. For each device determined to be new or modified, thecore engine 215 sends an initiate configuration scan request 312. Thecurrent configuration data of a device (device 235 is selected for easeof discussion) is returned from the device to the core engine 314 andcompared to the configuration data stored in the DIDB (205) 316. If datafrom the DIDB (205) and the device (235) do not match 320, the coreengine assembles new configuration data 325 for each application runningon application server (225).

The new configuration data are stored in the DIDB (205) 330 and thensent to the autocontroller (220) 335. The autocontroller (220)configures the applications running on application server (225) with thenew configuration data 340. As discussed below, the configuration datais customized to the format expected by each application running on theapplication server (225). The autocontroller (220) sends the revisedapplication configuration data back to the core engine (215) 345. Therevised configuration data are again compared with the data in DIDB(205) to ensure that the DIDB and the application server (225)applications are in sync as to the current configuration of the device(235). If variations are detected, the process of updating theapplication server is repeated.

The change management process illustrated in FIG. 3 is cyclical innature and works in the real-time, requiring no human intervention tomaintain accurate data acquisition and device monitoring. At the end ofthis cycle, the network is in sync with respect to device andapplication configurations, a result achieved without humanintervention.

EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

The exemplary embodiments that follow are intended to illustrate aspectsof the present invention, but are not meant as limitations. As will beapparent to those skilled in the art, the present invention may bepracticed in embodiments other than the exemplary embodiments describedherein without departing from the scope of the present invention.

A. The Core Engine

Referring to FIG. 4, the components of a core engine are illustratedaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. In thisembodiment, the core engine reads and updates the DIDB, buildsconfiguration files for network management tools, communicates withautocontrollers, analyzes data, imports data into the NDB, manages thefailover/redundancy components for all autocontroller instances, andsends status events to event reporting modules.

The core engine 400 comprises individual software components that worktogether in a modular fashion to read device inventories, user accesscontrol systems and control network-monitoring systems. In an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention, a task scheduler 405 is cron-run,as opposed to running as a formal daemon, in order to extend itsflexibility for the many roles that it performs. In this exemplaryembodiment of core engine 400, the functionality can be turned on andoff via command line switches, allowing the core engine to be run inseveral different modes simultaneously. Therefore, one instance of thecore engine 400 can be run in auto-discovery mode, detecting devices onthe network, while another auto-configures tools and controlscommunication of the polled data flow into the back-end database. Stillanother instance might be correlating data between the device inventoryand the actual current network topology.

In another exemplary embodiment, the core engine uses static memoryresident structures 410 to hold all device and service configurationinformation. Although the use of static memory consumes more memoryduring runtime, the memory structures are protected from other systemicprocesses, and therefore will not be corrupted if the system runs low onmemory. Furthermore, the static memory allows the program a fasterruntime when compared to a dynamic memory based system, which consumesseveral CPU cycles while allocating, reallocating, and cleaning memory.However, this is not meant as a limitation. As will be appreciated bythose skilled in the art of the present invention, the tasks of the coreengine may be implemented in software and hardware in numerous wayswithout departing from the scope of the present invention.

In another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the coreengine comprises a data poller module (DPM) 415 for polling devices inthe field via SNMP or by executing command-line interface commands onthe devices being monitored to obtain updated configuration information.In this embodiment, the core engine receives updated configuration datafrom DPM and compares the actual status of devices in the field againstthe last known configuration of the devices stored on the DIDB (notshown). This comparison is done by running the DPM against a specifieddevice and comparing the results of the poll with all of the values ofthe memory resident structures.

In yet another exemplary embodiment, the DPM 415 uses the SNMP andTelnet data acquisition methods, as well as Open Shortest Path First(OSPF) autodiscovery, to perform aggressive SNMP community stringtesting for devices with which it cannot communicate. This analysis isperformed to ensure the data integrity of the DIDB and thesynchronization of the NMS applications. Discrepancies found between theactual router field configuration and the database values are flagged bythe modification of the status column value to “changed.” An exceptionreport in the form of an email is then generated and forwarded to adesignated change control address, informing both network operationscenter (NOC) and support system personnel of the device change. An SNMPtrap, indicating the change, is also generated and sent to the NMSserver. Therefore, NOC personnel are able to compare this event with anyplanned tickets and act accordingly. Additionally, when the elements ofa specified device are found to have differences, the core enginediscerns both which device interface has changed and the old and newSNMP index values for the interface. This analysis helps preservearchived network monitoring data that is listed using a set of primarykeys (SNMP Interface Index, Interface IP address, and Type/Slot).

With respect to devices that have been flagged as “changed,” the coreengine 400 uses the configuration values stored in the DIDB structure toconfigure the NMS tools (applications) to reflect the changes. The SNMPtraps and email exception reports contain all relevant informationregarding the elements changed and the before and after values, in orderto accomplish accurate change management for each modified device. Ifthe SNMP index values have changed and the device is flagged formonitoring via the monitoring column of the structure, an automaticreconfiguration event for all NMS tools is initiated to reflect thegiven change. This mechanism ensures that changes found in the networkare communicated to applications across the network and flagged asexceptions for further analysis.

B. The Autocontroller

Referring to FIG. 5, the components of an autocontroller are illustratedaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Theautocontroller illustrated in FIG. 5 is illustrative of functionsperformed by an autocontroller according to the present invention, butthe invention is not limited to the functions illustrated. As previouslydescribed, the autocontroller manages the applications running on anapplication server. The functions of a particular autocontroller aretherefore specific to the applications that it manages.

According to the exemplary embodiment illustrated in FIG. 5, theautocontroller application is coded in a modular fashion therebysimplifying the addition of new tools (applications). The code comprisessoftware modules that the autocontroller loads into memory, creating asimple process for modifying the autocontroller behavior towards eachnetwork management application and customizing the autocontroller tofunction with network management applications of various vendors. Eachapplication under the core engine control uses the same autocontrollermodule, with each tool type and option selectable via command lineswitches. The autocontroller application is generic to any specificnetwork management application. Each application governed by theautocontroller is unique and requires customized code for to permit theautocontroller to perform its assigned management tasks. By way ofillustration, a module permits the autocontroller to stop, started,restart, manipulate, and direct an application. Because the commandstructure differs among applications, a unique module customized to anapplication is used. The process is run under cron control, withsafeguards to block multiple instances, allowing better applicationcontrol and a customizable run frequency.

One of the primary functions of the autocontroller is to update filesfor network management applications in the field with files created bythe core engine. After being generated by the core engine, the freshlycreated configuration files, binary files, modules and the like aretransferred to the appropriate application server. In an exemplaryembodiment of the present invention, this transfer is accomplished viafile transfer protocol (FTP) or secure protocol (SCP) and thetransferred filed is stored in an incoming directory 505 to awaitprocessing. Each configuration file follows a strict naming conventionthat also allows for a custom (unique) component. Furthermore, theautocontroller is designed to accept program binary updates, datacollection/analyzer files, and shell command files.

FIG. 6 illustrates the core engine/autocontroller transfer file formatsas used in an exemplary embodiment according to the present invention.In this exemplary embodiment, the network applications are components ofNetcool® Suit™ produced by MicroMuse Inc., but this is not meant as alimitation. Referring to FIG. 6, each transfer file name is broken downinto four or five dot-notated words. For example:

acfile.<ID>.<unique piece>.<TAG>.[DSM]

The first word, acfile, identifies the file as one that theautocontroller should process. The <ID> represents the instance numberin the meta-data configuration file. The <TAG> is one of the filenameand tags listed in the table above. The optional [DSM] defines the DSMto which this file pertains, and is used by the event reporting moduleand applications running on the NMS poller servers. As will be apparentto those skilled in the art, other file formats capable of conveyingfile, TAG, and DSM identifying information may be employed withoutdeparting from the scope of the present invention.

Each application governed by the autocontroller is unique and requirescustomized code for such management tasks as being stopped, started,restarted, manipulated, or directed. To that end, the autocontroller hasan application code module 515 dedicated to each application that itsupports. Each application is tied to a command line trigger so thatindividual applications can be activated or not activated, as desired,depending upon the autocontroller location and purpose. According to anexemplary embodiment, if the autocontroller is commanded to check forincoming files (default behavior in an embodiment), each file listed inthe incoming directory (see FIG. 5) has its filename parsed to determinewhether it is a core engine transfer file. Once the filename is parsedand identified, specific action is taken depending upon the file beingtransferred to the autocontroller. The <ID> field ties each transferfile back to a specific application instance in the meta-dataconfiguration file, determining the application type and location towhich the file applies, as well as other details. The <TAG> fielddefines the type of transfer file being sent in, and thus determines thecourse of action to be taken regarding the contents of the file. In thecase of application configuration and binary files, the files arerenamed to the application standard, moved into position, and a restartof the application is scheduled. In the case of command line files(IDX), the file represents shell commands to be executed (one commandper line). The [DSM] field, event reporting module, defines the role ofthe configuration file being propagated. In the present embodiment, DSMNo. 1 is primary and DSM No. 2 is the backup file for use by a remotedata center (RDC) in the event the primary data control center is unableto perform its tasks.

If the autocontroller successfully processes a given transfer file, thefile is compressed and archived in a storage directory 510. If theautocontroller fails to successfully process a transfer file, it issuesan alarm notification and the file remains in the incoming directory sothat processing may be reattempted the next time the autocontrollerlaunches. This allows transfer files to accumulate in the incomingdirectory 505, and to be processed at another time; to ensure that nochange is lost should the autocontroller fail to operate for any reason.

The shell command processor 545 of the autocontroller of this exemplaryembodiment fulfills several requirements. First, it is used to activate,deactivate, and restart applications, when necessary, from a centralizedlocation. Using this feature the core engine can direct and coordinatethe redundancy features of each autocontroller instance in the field.The shell command processor 545 also serves as a mechanism for datacollection of non-SNMP data, such as traceroute, by listing processesrunning on a server and gathering statistical information about serverperformance that is not otherwise available through a network managementtool. It can also be used in a utilitarian role to globally executechanges on all autocontroller servers (or some grouping there of). Thiscapability grants the core engine and its autocontroller enormousflexibility and data collection capability.

The shell commands executed using this feature run from the same accountas the autocontroller, which is never the root user. Each command is runindividually and has its output directed to a log file that theautocontroller will later analyze and return to the core engine as aresult file. This logging allows the core engine to confirm that eachshell command executed properly, and provides an easy mechanism forgathering data from the field servers. The format of the shell commandinput file consists of each shell command to be executed on a singleline of ASCII text.

According to an exemplary embodiment, a result analyzer module 520 ofthe autocontroller parses output files and the results from selectedapplications and performs actions based upon that analysis. In theexemplary embodiment, parsing comprises processing a text output file orconfiguration file following the execution of shell commands,reconfiguration commands, and log files by the autocontroller. Theresult analyzer module 520 runs after all incoming transfer files areprocessed and all commands and reconfigurations are complete. When theresults of this analysis require that the data be returned to the coreengine, output files with the appropriate naming convention are createdand moved to the outgoing directory to be transferred.

In its simplest form for shell commands, the result analyzer module 520will return the raw output of each command executed in an easy to parseformat that the core engine can process. The shell commands processingfiles are sent to the autocontroller from the core engine, where theyare executed one command at a time and the results placed in a speciallyformatted output file. In this manner, any desired shell commands can berun on the autocontroller server at will, providing the core engine andits autocontroller instances with great control and flexibility overtheir operating environment.

In a more complex context, a result analyzer module 520 is used with aDSM (distributed status monitor) 550 to analyze the results of devicereconfigurations. Each time the autocontroller schedules and executes adevice reconfiguration, the results of that reconfiguration are placedin an ASCII log file 555. A successful reconfiguration will result in aconfiguration file that a DSM will use to SNMP poll that device. Thesedevice configuration files contain valuable information about theinterfaces that reside on the device, as well as a listing of eachobject identifier (OID) polled for the device. The result analyzermodule 520 parses both of these files to determine if thereconfiguration was successful, and if so, to mine the deviceconfiguration file for critical data. This data is placed in a speciallyformatted output file in the outgoing directory that is picked up by thetransfer file process and returned to the core engine.

A file return module 560 is used to send result files and other datafrom an instance of the autocontroller to the core engine servers. In anembodiment of the present invention, the file return module 560 usesboth FTP and SCP as the actual transfer mechanism, both of which areselectable using command line options. The file return module 560utilizes a user-selected outgoing directory that it will scan for filesto be transferred. This process does not depend on a particular filenaming convention, but rather, will transfer any file located in theoutgoing directory to the core engine.

This generic operation of the file return module 560 allows theautocontroller and other applications (if required) to perform a myriadof different tasks and simply place their return output in the outgoingdirectory, as each task is completed. For security purposes, theautocontroller will only return files to the core engine, and not toother user-defined locations. The file return module 560 is one of thelast functions performed by the autocontroller during runtime operation.

In another exemplary embodiment, each autocontroller supports aredundancy module 565. The purpose of the redundancy module is to detectfailures and handle application failover. In this context, theautocontroller instances will start and stop a backup applicationinstance, locally store critical SNMP data, and literally shutthemselves down or reactivate themselves depending upon their status andthe status of an assigned buddy autocontroller.

The autocontroller has an internal ping module 570 that allows it toperform pings against the core engine core and other autocontrollerservers. The autocontroller also has an integration module 575 thatallows it to make SNMP, I CMP, trace-route, and Web queries using astandardized XML-like messaging library. In another embodiment of thepresent invention, if connectivity to the core engine is lost, theautocontroller redundancy module 565 initiates a series of tasks toreestablish communication. All autocontroller instances involved willsend alarm traps and e-mails, and log the event. The autocontroller willlaunch one or more instances of the event reporting module 580 in orderto capture critical SNMP data in local files, which can then betransferred and uploaded to the NDB later. When the core engine corebecomes reachable again, it commands the autocontroller to resume normalcommunication with the core. The backup event reporting module instancesare shut down and their locally held data files are moved into theoutgoing directory for transport. Once in the outgoing directory thereturn file module 560 will handle the actual transport back to the coreengine core.

Similarly, in another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, ifconnectivity to a buddy autocontroller is lost the autocontrollerredundancy module initiates tasks to reestablish communication with thebuddy autocontroller. The following cause/effect scenarios are accountedfor in this embodiment of the autocontroller redundancy module:

Cause: Connectivity to the APISCii core server is lost.

Effect:

-   -   All autocontroller instances involved will send alarm traps and        e-mails, and log the event.    -   The autocontroller will launch one or more backup instances of        the error reporting module in order to capture critical SNMP        data in local files, which can then be transferred and uploaded        to the NDB later.    -   When the core engine becomes reachable again, it commands the        autocontroller to resume normal communication with the core        engine.    -   The backup error reporting instances are shut down and their        locally held data files are moved into the outgoing directory        for transport.    -   Once in the outgoing directory the return file module will        handle the actual transport back to the core engine.

Cause: Connectivity to a buddy NMS poller server is lost.

Effect:

-   -   All autocontroller instances involved will send alarm traps and        e-mails, and log the event.    -   The autocontroller will launch a backup instance of the DSM to        support and poll the devices normally polled by the unreachable        buddy. This involves launching DSM No. 2 with the failed buddy        NMS poller's device list. The autocontroller will maintain DSM        No. 2 for a period of time after the buddy NMS poller server        comes back online.    -   The autocontroller used by the event reporting servers will        launch a modified version of event reporting module 580 for the        failed buddy NMS poller server that looks at DSM No. 2 for SNMP        data.

C. Core Engine Configuration

According to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, the coreengine utilizes two configuration files to perform all of its necessaryoperations: Meta-Configuration and object identifier (OID)configuration. These files contain specific instructions for themanagement of network management applications. In this exemplaryembodiment, the core engine and the autocontroller use the sameMeta-configuration file, which allows the core and field elements toremain completely synchronized. The configuration file is read in whenthe autocontroller boots. This file is broken down into three mainsections using a single simplified attribute/value pair table that isdesigned for direct integration with the DIDB database. In this manner,the DIDB control the activities of each field autocontroller instance.The Meta-configuration file contains three fields, an integer ID fieldand attribute/value pair fields. The ID number determines theapplication instance to which each attributes/value pair belongs. Thefirst section designates the core engine core, the second theautocontroller, and the remaining sections are for each applicationinstance.

Referring to FIG. 7, the structure of a meta file is illustratedaccording to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. In thisexemplary embodiment, the network applications are components ofNetcool® Suit™ produced by MicroMuse Inc. and the OpenView suit of NMSproducts produced by Hewlett-Packard Company, but this is not meant as alimitation. Each application instance has a unique ID number for it'seach attribute/value pairs. The schema architecture of theMeta-configuration files used in this embodiment for the core engine andthe autocontroller instances was chosen for several reasons. The use ofa simple attribute/value pair format makes the integration withdatabases clean and easy to change and manipulate. The core engine andthe autocontroller instances connect to the DIDB to poll theconfiguration file directly. This ensures that changes made to the DIDBregarding the core engine and the autocontroller take effect quickly.For redundancy purposes the autocontroller makes a local backup copy ofthe meta-data configuration file so that in the event the databasebecomes unreachable, the autocontroller is can continue to functionusing their last good read from DIDB.

Another attribute of this format is that it is standardized and can beeasily understood. The purpose of each variable is incorporated into itsname, using a logical naming convention. If more than one word comprisesa variable, each word in the variable is capitalized (example:PollingSite). The meta-data design is completely extensible out to aninfinite number of application instances without requiring structuralchanges. This feature of the configuration file is especially useful innetwork management systems with large network device inventories.

The meta-data format further accommodates the creation and propagationof the same network management tool's configuration file to severallocations. For example, multiple instances of an application may uniqueinstances defined in the configuration file. Because both the coreengine and each autocontroller use the same configuration file, the coreengine core and the inventory of autocontrollers are always synchronizedwith one another.

At application boot time, the autocontroller attempts to connect to theDIDB and read its meta-configuration file using scripts. If thissucceeds, a fresh local backup of the meta-configuration is saved todisk. If it fails, the autocontroller issues an alarm and falls back tothe last known good copy of the meta-configuration file stored on disk.Once the meta-configuration file is read, it is stored in memorystructures that mimic the file structure.

Referring to FIG. 8, the structure of an object identifier (OID)configuration file is illustrated according to an exemplary embodimentof the present invention. The object identifier configuration fileprovides a mechanism for specifying how SNMP OIDs are gathered. Eachdevice and device interface can have a custom list of OIDs that arepolled and expected back via a report of that data. The autocontrolleruses this configuration data to build the event reporting moduleconfiguration files, which specify the OID data required from eachdevice in the field.

As illustrated in FIG. 8, the OID configuration file comprises:

-   -   a Loopback IP the IP address of the device listed in the DIDB.        This field acts as the primary key for each device;    -   SNMP index—the integer SNMP index value for the device interface        to which this OID applies. A value of ‘0’ indicates that the OID        is a chassis OID and thus does not apply to any interface. The        value of ‘−1’ indicates that the OID should apply to all        interfaces on the device;    -   OID—the dot-notated form of the OID being polled;    -   Polling frequency—how often the OID is to be polled in seconds.        A value of 300 thus indicates that the OID is to be polled once        every five minutes; and    -   Status—an integer binary (0/1) that determines whether the OID        is active or inactive. In the exemplary embodiment, the status        field is used to turn off regularly scheduled polling of four        OIDs during outages, maintenance windows, failover scenarios,        and the like.

The OID configuration file is similar in structure to a baseconfiguration file, with the addition of two fields—‘Polling Interval’and ‘Status’. The format thus allows each device and device interfaceknown to the DIDB to have OIDs defined at custom intervals forretrieval, storage in the NDB, and reporting. Another similarity to thebase meta-configuration file is that the OID configuration file isprepared from a table in the DIDB schema, and the same OID configurationfile is used by all autocontroller instances.

OTHER EMBODIMENTS

The present invention has been described in the context of a networkmanage system in which the data to be synchronized comprisesconfiguration data. The invention is not so limited. In anotherembodiment, the “network” is a distributed financial system and the datato be synchronized financial variables that are used by variousapplications of the financial system. In this embodiment, the centraldatabase receives reports of changes in financial variables frominformation gathering applications across a financial network. The coreengine monitors the central data structure, determines if a financialvariable has changed within the network, then populates the changes toall network applications. In this way, the financial network is“synchronized” as to the variables that are deemed important to thefunctioning of the financial network. As those skilled in the art of thepresent invention will appreciate, the present invention can be appliedto any system in which disparate components benefit from synchronization(such as billing systems and weather systems) without departing from thescope of the present invention.

A system and method for the configuration of distributed networkmanagement applications and devices has now been illustrated. Themanagement of these devices and applications (sometimes collectivelyreferred to as “objects”) is performed without human intervention.Although the particular embodiments shown and described above will proveto be useful in many applications relating to the arts to which thepresent invention pertains, further modifications of the presentinvention herein disclosed will occur to persons skilled in the art. Allsuch modifications are deemed to be within the scope of the presentinvention as defined by the appended claims.

1. A change management system comprising: a network management objectconnected to a network, wherein the network management object isassociated with network management object configuration information; adatastore, wherein the datastore comprises last known configurationinformation associated with the network management object; and a coreengine connected to the network, wherein the core engine comprisesinstructions for: polling the network management object for currentconfiguration information of the network management object; receivingthe current configuration information from the network managementobject; making a determination as to whether the current networkmanagement object configuration information is different from the lastknown network management object configuration information as stored inthe datastore; when the current network management object configurationinformation is different from the last known network management objectconfiguration information, then processing the current networkmanagement object configuration information received from the networkmanagement object to obtain a new network management objectconfiguration file; identifying an application on a network applicationserver that uses the configuration information of the network managementobject; and sending the new network management object configuration fileto the network application server on which the identified applicationresides.
 2. The system of claim 1, wherein the network management objectcomprises a configurable device.
 3. The system of claim 2, wherein thedevice is selected from the group consisting of a switch, a modem, and aserver.
 4. The system of claim 1, wherein the network management objectcomprises a configurable application.
 5. The system of claim 4, whereinthe configurable application is selected from the group consisting of apoller, a reporting engine, a network portal, and an access controlserver.
 6. The system of claim 1, wherein the core engine furthercomprises instructions for updating the datastore with the currentnetwork management object configuration information of the networkmanagement object.
 7. The system of claim 1, wherein the networkmanagement object has no last known configuration information.
 8. Thesystem of claim 1 further comprising a controller server associated withthe network application server on which the identified applicationresides, wherein the controller server comprises instructions for:receiving the new network management object configuration file;converting the new network management object configuration file into aformat accepted by the identified application; and updating aconfiguration of the identified application with the convertedconfiguration file.
 9. The system of claim 8, wherein the controllerserver further comprises instructions for: determining whether theidentified application is successfully updated; and when the identifiedapplication is not successfully updated, issuing an alert.
 10. Thesystem of claim 1 further comprising a controller server associated withthe network application server and with a buddy network applicationserver, wherein the controller server comprises instructions for:monitoring connectivity between the application server and the buddynetwork application server; when the connectivity between the networkapplication server and the buddy network application server is lost,then launching on the network application server a backup instance of anapplication operated by the buddy network application server; operatingthe back-up instance of the application on the network applicationserver so as to perform the tasks of the buddy network applicationserver; monitoring the connectivity between the network applicationserver and the buddy network application server; and when theconnectivity between the network application server and the buddynetwork application server is restored, then shutting down the backupinstance of the application on the network application server.
 11. Thesystem of claim 1, wherein the network is selected from the groupconsisting of a hybrid fiber network, a wired network, and a wirelessnetwork.
 12. The system of claim 1, wherein the network is the Internet.13. The system of claim 1, wherein the network is an intranet.
 14. Amethod for managing change on a network, wherein the network comprises anetwork management object connected to the network and wherein thenetwork management object is associated with network management objectconfiguration information, the method comprising: polling the networkmanagement object for current configuration information; receiving thecurrent network management object configuration information from thenetwork management object; accessing a datastore comprising last knownconfiguration information associated with the network management object;determining whether the current network management object configurationinformation is different from the last known network management objectconfiguration information as stored in the datastore; when the currentnetwork management object configuration information is different fromthe last known network management object configuration information, thenprocessing the current network management object configurationinformation received from the network management object to obtain a newnetwork management object configuration file; identifying an applicationthat uses the configuration information of the network managementobject; and sending the new network management object configuration fileto the network application server on which the identified applicationresides.
 15. The method of claim 14, wherein the network managementobject comprises a configurable device.
 16. The method of claim 15,wherein the device is selected from the group consisting of a switch, amodem, and a server.
 17. The method of claim 14, wherein the networkmanagement object comprises a configurable application.
 18. The methodof claim 17, wherein the configurable application is selected from thegroup consisting of a poller, a reporting engine, a network portal, andan access control server.
 19. The method of claim 14 further comprisingupdating the datastore with the current network management objectconfiguration information of the network management object.
 20. Themethod of claim 14, wherein the network management object has no lastknown network management object configuration information.
 21. Themethod of claim 14, wherein the network further comprises a controllerserver associated with the network application server on which theidentified application resides and wherein the method further comprises:receiving at the controller server the new network management objectconfiguration file; converting the new network management objectconfiguration file into a format accepted by the identified application;and updating a configuration of the identified application with theconverted configuration file.
 22. The method of claim 21 furthercomprising: determining whether the identified application issuccessfully updated; and when the identified application is notsuccessfully updated, issuing an alert.
 23. The method of claim 14,wherein the network further comprises a buddy network application serverand wherein the method further comprises: monitoring connectivitybetween the network application server and a buddy network applicationserver; when the connectivity between the network application server andthe buddy network application server is lost, then launching on thenetwork application server a backup instance of an application operatedby the buddy network application server; operating the backup instanceof the application on the network application server so as to performthe tasks of the buddy network application server on the networkapplication server; monitoring the connectivity between the networkapplication server and the buddy network application server; and whenconnectivity between the network application server and the buddynetwork application server is restored, then shutting down the backupinstance of the application on the network application server.
 24. Themethod of claim 14, wherein the network is selected from the groupconsisting of a hybrid fiber network, a wired network, and a wirelessnetwork.
 25. The method of claim 14, wherein the network is theInternet.
 26. The method of claim 14, wherein the network is anintranet.